No one needs to tell Ozark High School wrestlers Jace Gorn and Cody Curnutt that, come postseason time, the wins usually come by those who know how to grind through a six-minute match, or overtime if need-be.
A case in point were two of their victories Tuesday night, which marked exactly one month from district tournaments. In essence, call it a night when Gorn and Curnutt sharpened skills but also learned valuable lessons for the road ahead.
“I usually have a hard time getting myself to try to take risks, like shooting (takedowns). I try to hand-fight with guys,” Gorn said. “I’ve tried to practice on taking shots, and getting the courage to do so.”
It’ll be interesting to see Gorn’s and Curnutt’s progress a month from now. Gorn outlasted Branson heavyweight David Stacey 7-5 in an ultimate tiebreaker – arguably the most exciting match of a double dual at Ozark High School — while Curnutt eked out a 1-0 victory against Kickapoo 195-pound P.J. Walker.
Their performances highlighted the Ozark Tigers’ sweeps of Branson and Kickapoo by scores of 57-22 and 36-23, respectively. Ozark did so despite sitting four regulars, including Tucker Jennings, in order to keep them eligible for the district tournament, which caps eligibility at 50 regular-season matches.
Gorn scored a two-point reversal in the final 30 seconds. Stacey’s one-point escape late in regulation sent the match into overtime, in which neither scored in the first minute, and then the two traded escapes in the next two 30-second periods.
“I have high hopes for him. He’s only a sophomore,” coach Shawn Kellis said of Gorn. “Gorn’s just going to have to score more on offense.”
Credit Stacey, a junior, for making the match interesting. Gorn pinned him a year ago.
“He’s really coming along,” Branson coach Robbie Pittman said of Stacey. “It’s good to see him evolving into a wrestler.”
Said Stacey, “I’ve gotten a lot better the past two years. I’ve worked hard on takedowns and getting stronger.”
Mindset was key to the win, said Gorn.
“I just tried not to psyche myself out,” Gorn said. “That’s been my downfall.”
Meanwhile, Curnutt may be building confidence. He is now 23-3 after moving down a weight class to 195. Two of his losses are to top-ranked wrestlers.
“I’m expecting some grinding for wins,” Curnutt said. “Tonight, I wasn’t exactly happy with the result. But at the same time, I came out with a win. I have to work on neutral and setting up takedowns more. I had a defensive wrestler tonight, and I need to learn how to get through that a lot easier, by setting up points.”
Kickapoo led 17-15 early in the Ozark dual before the Tigers reeled off a string of wins in the upper weights.
Still, Branson and Kickapoo had reasons to be somewhat optimistic.
For Branson, the Pirates not only beat Kickapoo 48-27, but 138-pound Jacob Ulrich looked sharp in his techniques, including switches and duck-under takedowns from his knees. He’s back from battling injuries. He placed fifth at 132 last year.
“He’s our technician, so wiry,” Pitman said.
For Kickapoo, it was the Chiefs’ first competition since the Kinloch Holiday Classic in late December. They withheld two wrestlers nursing injuries, including heavyweight Marquis Jacoby-Davis.
“Some of our matches didn’t go the way we wanted to,” Kickapoo coach Billy Buckley said. “When you wrestle good teams like Ozark, you’ve got to turn your decisions into majors and majors into (technical falls). You’ve got to get bonus points.”
Ozark 57, Branson 22
106 – Skyler Harris, Branson, won by forfeit; 113 – Jake Nichols, Ozark, def. Tanner Luna, Branson, by pin 0:50; 120 – Larry Zelaya, Ozark, won by forfeit; 126 – James Nickols, Ozark, won by forfeit; 132 – Hunter Holderfield, Branson, de. Cole West, Ozark, by pin 2:45; 138 – Jacob Ulrich, Branson, def. Loban Sorensen, Ozark, by pin 2:58; 145 – Josh Neidig, Ozark, def. Tristan Engel, Branson, by pin 3:07; 152 – Barrett Beaird, Ozark, def. Collin Andrews, Branson, by pin 3:07; 160 – Isaiah Wittmer, Branson, def. Tylson Albright, Ozark, by major dec., 14-5; 170 – Ryan Tayor, Ozark, def. Seth Watson, Branson, by pin 0:48; 182 – Nathaniel Burlage, Ozark, def. Jordan Hall, Branson, by pin 0:21; 220 – Zach Tracy, Ozark, def. Cameron Bunting, Branson, by pin, 0:12; 285 – Jace Gorn, Ozark, def. David Stacey, Branson, UTB 7-5.
Ozark 36, Kickapoo 23
106 – double forfeit; 113 – Jake Wannenmacher, Kickapoo, def. Larry Zelaya, Ozark, 6-5; 120 – Jake Nickols, Ozark, def. Tanner Raymond, Kickapoo, 6-0; 126 – James Nickols, Ozark, def. Cade Schmitz, Kickapoo, 6-2; 132 – Dustin Owen, Kickapoo, def. Kaleb Doyle, Ozark, by pin 0:35; 138 – Zac Cook, Kickapoo, def. Logan Sorensen, Ozark, tech fall 22-7 4:38, 145 – Josh Neidig, Ozark, def. Camden Schmitz, Kickapoo, 4-2; 152 – Colin Harper, Kickapoo, def. Carter Kenyon, Ozark, by pin 5:18; 160 – Tyson Albright, Ozark, def. Noah Jennerjohn, Kickapoo, by pin 0:55; 170 – Ryan Taylor, Ozark, def. Jason Norman, Kickapoo, by pin, 2:39; 182 – Nathaniel Burlage, Ozark, won by forfeit; 195 – Cody Curnutt, Ozark, def. P.J. Walker, Kickapoo, 1-0; 220 – Christian Blevins, Kickapoo, def. Zach Tracy, Ozark, 5-1; 285 – Jace Gorn, Ozark, def. Blake Chambers, Kickapoo, by pin 3:56.
Branson 48, Kickapoo 27
Results unavailable on Track Wrestling
